by mark » Wed Nov 05, 2008 4:42 pm
Your questions about campsites is relative to the time of year, as the high country sites are now closed for the winter. But, assuming you are speaking of winter camping, it being November already, your options are Upper Pines, Lower Pines and Wawona Campgrounds. Outside the park in El Portal there is Indian Flats campground, a private campground where reservations are easier to get. There is a dump station in Upper Pines, and if you have a large RV, you will be able to find a campsite that is able to handle your needs through the reservation system. It's hard to get a site, because of the demand, but there are cancelations, and sometimes openings during the week prior to your hoped for trip that only show up for a short time before someone snaps them up. For warmer seasons, you need to find out when the park will allow a reservation to be made in advance of your arrival date. You can get that information from their website.
Then, you have to get on the phone or computer on the morning of that day, at the exact minute they open in the morning and hammer their phone line or website to see if you will be lucky enough to get a site before they're all sold out within minutes that morning. The Valley campgrounds, Upper Pines, Lower Pines and North Pines, are relatively close to each other and offer many good hiking options nearby. It’s a good idea to already have an account at the reservations website, so you can follow through with a reservation, once you start.